James Guy claimed two titles and Freya Anderson was also among the winners on the first day of the Flanders Cup in Antwerp with Olympic preparations now in full swing.
Guy won the 200m freestyle after leading from the outset and pulling away in the second half of the race with the 2015 world champion first to the wall in 1:47.50 ahead of Alexandre Marcourt in 1:48.32 and Sebastian De Meulemeester (1:48.99).
He then returned to the pool to win the 100m fly, a 27.8sec second 50 propelling him to 52.25 ahead of Louis Croenen second in 52.99 with Joeri Verlinden third (53.41).
Konrad Czerniak, 2014 European champion and 2011 and 2013 world medallist in the two-length event, was back in fourth in 53.76.
Freya Anderson – Photo Courtesy: Patrick B. Kraemer
Anderson was an emphatic winner in the 100m as she continued the fine form that saw her twice top in the podium over 50 and 100m at the European Short-Course Championships in Glasgow last month.
The Briton was the youngest in the field but what she gave away in years, she made up for in maturity in the water as she produced the only sub-28sec second 50 of 27.52 to get her hand on the wall first in 53.81.
There was clear daylight and 1.32secs between her and second-placed Annika Bruhn (55.13) with Belgian record holder Valentine Dumont third in 55.30.
Photo Courtesy: Xinhua/Youth Olympic Games
Maaike De Waard got a golden double as she followed up on the 50m backstroke title she won in 28.20 ahead of 2015 100m bronze medallist Mie Nielsen to take 50 fly gold in 26.47.
There was disappointment for Irish record holder Darragh Greene who thought he had won the 200m breaststroke in 2:12.29 after a storming final length but he was disqualified for an incorrect touch.
Instead the title went to Giedrius Titenis, who won world bronze way back in 2009, who held off his fellow Lithuanian Andrius Sidlauskas by 0.30secs in 2:12.59.
It heralded a Lithuanian breaststroke double with Kotryna Teterevkova taking the women’s 100m title after making up a deficit of 0.39secs on Belgian Fanny Lecluyse at the turn to come home in 1:08.36 to 1:08.39.
Roles were reversed in the men’s 50br though when Sidlauskas came second behind Peter Stevens as the Slovenian double European medallist won in 26.63, 0.36 ahead of the Lithuanian with Titenis third in 28.15.
Shane Ryan – Photo Courtesy: Swim Ireland
It was better news for Ireland in the men’s 100m backstroke with Shane Ryan leading home a one-two in 54.71 ahead of Conor Ferguson (55.11) with Craig McNally third.
Kenzo Simons won the men’s 50 free in 22.50, 0.04secs ahead of Netherlands team-mates Jesse Puts and Stan Pijnenburg (22.86).
Of special note in the splash and dash was the presence of Great Britain’s Jacob Whittle, who last year became the fastest 14-year-old over 100m free in history when he broke through the 50-second barrier in 49.97, was fifth in Antwerp in 23.37.
Rio Olympian Anton Ipsen was ahead at the 100m mark in the men’s 400 free, a lead that was never threatened as he enjoyed an emphatic victory in 3:49.95, the only sub-3:50 in the field.
Anderson’s Ellesmere Titans team-mate Charlie Hutchison went to the front on the backstroke leg, a lead that was never relinquished to win the 200IM in 2:03.34.
Katie Matts won the women’s 400IM after pulling away on the breaststroke leg to touch in 4:50.11, Nathalia Almeida of Brazil more than five seconds adrift in 4:55.14.
Ellen Walshe of Ireland led from start to finish to take the 200 fly in 2:14.15, Nadine Laemmler took the 200 back in 2:13.26 and Rune Theuwis headed the fastest heat of the 800 free, which featured just five women, in 9:42.69.